Law

Even in the present recession law graduates have one of the highest employment rates nationally whether in law or law-related fields. The possibilities with this subject are extensive.

Skills you can develop

As well as the specific subject knowledge gained from studying an OU degree, you'll develop many transferable and work-related skills that are highly valued by employers and which will increase your employability.

The OU Careers Advisory Service defines student employability as: ‘A set of capabilities and achievements that support students in developing their careers, raising their aspirations and enhancing their contribution to society’.

Whatever your motivations for study, your goals and career aspirations, you are entitled to supported personal development planning either as an intrinsic part of your programme of study or through signposted optional activities.  You can view our full Student Employability Policy Statement on our website.

For Law students the employability skills you will develop that are highly valued by employers include:

• an in-depth knowledge of the foundation subjects of law and of the legal system of England and Wales
• an ability to apply legal principles to resolve issues
• an ability to make a reasoned choice between different opinions and solutions and present it to an audience
• an ability to read and discuss complex and technical legal materials
• competence in the use of basic IT, databases and websites
• thinking critically about your own learning and performance and taking steps to improve them.

See a full list of learning outcomes for the Bachelor of Laws (Honours) degree.

To check which work-related skills can be developed from studying a particular subject, look at the Student Employability Profiles (PDF 3MB) on the Higher Education Academy website. Although these are designed for higher education practitioners, the subject profiles can help you identify the transferable skills you will gain from studying this subject area.

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Career opportunities

In the UK over 60% of graduates enter employment where a degree in any subject would be acceptable. In this instance what they offer the employer is evidence of the range of competencies which have been developed through their academic study, rather than the specific subject content of their degree. This page will focus on careers directly related to Law, however, if you want to explore all of the choices open to you, also refer to the Further Resources section.

Given the current economic climate and the increased competition for graduate positions, it is important to consider a range of occupational areas. Bear in mind that many careers require further study, training and/or work experience beyond your degree.

The Open University Law School and The College of Law work together in partnership to offer the undergraduate Law degree (LLB). This is a qualifying law degree in England and Wales and is the first stage of legal training, known as the academic stage. If you intend to become a solicitor in England or Wales, the College of Law will guarantee you a place on its Legal Practice Course (the vocational stage of training for intending solicitors) if you successfully complete the Law degree through the Open University Law School. This guarantee is for two years after you graduate. After that you can still apply to the College of Law or any other provider, but you will not be guaranteed a place.

The College of Law has different dedicated routes to help you target your career as a solicitor, from legal aided work through to global corporate work. The College's endorsement by so many leading law firms gives it an outstanding network of careers opportunities. The College of Law and the OU Law School organise an annual Careers Day to enable OU Law students to plan their law and law-related career paths.

The OU LLB law degree will not enable you to become a lawyer outside England and Wales. For instance, if you want to become a solicitor or advocate in Scotland you will need an LLB in Scots Law followed by a Diploma in Legal Practice, offered by several universities in Scotland. See the following websites for information on qualifying for the legal profession in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland:

• Law Society of Scotland
• Law Society of Northern Ireland
• Law Society of Ireland.

Jobs within the legal profession include legal executive, paralegal, solicitor and barrister. These roles can be found in private practice, in central or local government, commerce, industry, the armed forces or in professional bodies. You should be aware that competition has greatly increased in recent years in finding training and work as a prospective solicitor or barrister and recently qualified solicitors and barristers may take longer to find work than was common a few years ago.

Some recent developments have impacted on careers in the legal profession. The Bar Professional Training Course (formerly the Bar Vocational Course) now accepts only applicants who have passed a stringent pre-entry test. Training contracts (TCs) are increasingly available on a part-time basis or while combining legal employment with relevant study. The current recession has affected recruitment to law, both at the corporate end (City law firms) and smaller practices, particularly those offering legal aid. It will also affect opportunities within the Civil Service and local government.

It will be increasingly necessary for those wanting to qualify as lawyers to gain as much relevant work experience as possible while studying and to use networking and creative job hunting skills. Increasingly, once their studies are over, intending solicitors without much hands-on experience are taking work as paralegals to compensate for this deficiency. They then move on to training contracts once they have built up the necessary applied background.

Other job roles include Citizens Advice Bureau caseworker, Crown Prosecution Service caseworker, magistrates' court legal adviser, court reporter or administrator, licensed conveyancer, patent attorney or trademark agent, teacher or lecturer in law.

A law degree can open up many career options for you that are not just in the legal profession. The Civil Service, local government, marketing, human resources, advisory work, general management and business and financial services are all areas that can make use of your legal knowledge and skills. Law graduates and those with legal vocational training are very marketable in all these areas.

Law graduates are also found working in the emergency services, health services, insurance, personnel and advisory work, and in many other fields. Employers recognise that studying law gives you the chance to develop yourself beyond the boundaries of your normal work environment, giving you skills and knowledge that you can readily put into practice on a daily basis in your job.

We advise you to thoroughly research your career choices as early as possible, particularly in relation to experience required, differences relating to where you live or where the study choices you make may affect future opportunities.

Use the Prospects website to explore career options related to this subject. Click on ‘Law’ to see examples of job roles and get information for further research. You can also look at the Law Sector information.

If you live in Ireland look at the relevant information on career sectors and jobs with your degree on the Gradireland website.

To find out about ways of gaining experience through volunteering see our voluntary work pages.  You can also use the searchable databases on the following web sites:

• Do it!
• Volunteer Scotland
• Volunteer Ireland
• Volunteering Wales

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Your employers

Rigorous academic standards ensure that OU qualifications are recognised and valued by professional organisations and employers.

As an OU student, you can access the Employer Showcase to find out about some of the employers who are keen to recruit OU graduates.

Employers featured on the Employer Showcase that are particularly relevant for law graduates include

• Beachcroft LLP
• Cooperative Group
• GlaxoSmithKline
• Hogan Lovells
• Tesco

If you are a student you might want to see further advice from major employers on applications, the skills they require and the value of OU study. Go to our What employers say pages.

As an OU student you can also register for our online vacancy service and receive email notification about job opportunities.

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Further resources

Use the other sections of this web site to

• plan your career
• explore your career options  
• identify your achievements, skills and strengths
• get advice on job seeking

Don’t forget to check the careers home page regularly for news of events, forums, careers fairs and short courses (modules). If you are an OU student you can participate in and read entries on our annual online forums.

If you are a current OU student (or finished your studies within the last three years) you are entitled to a careers consultation with a careers adviser in your region or nation. This is designed to help you through the planning process and identify an action plan for your future. (Non-OU students should go to the Contact page of this website for other sources of careers advice.)

Note: you will need your OU computer username and password to access this booklet.

The ‘How to Get Ahead in a Legal Career (PDF 632KB)’ booklet was developed by the Careers Advisory Service and the School of Law to help OU Law students to plan for a career in the legal profession. It contains useful information such as how to gain legal work experience, and how to develop your legal network of contacts.

The Future Lawyers Network is the College of Law’s association and resource for people taking the first steps towards a legal career. It is free to join and members receive legal training information, profiles of practising and trainee lawyers, details of upcoming legal events and a regular e-newsletter.

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